The Snare of the Devil
QUESTION
“And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.” (II Timothy 2:26)
Brother Dan, would this verse be speaking of Gods lost sheep II Corinthians 4:3-4 in the church who are entangled in the net of false gospels?
Thanks!
ANSWER
Let's look at the passage:
"Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not; But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." (II Corinthians 4:1-6)
Your question seems to come down to "who is intended by THEM THAT ARE LOST in this passage?" Are these LOST people the non-elect or are they God's people whose minds are confounded by deception? The context is Paul speaking of the requirement that a gospel minister be honest and clear in his presentation of the truth, such that if gospel truth is "hidden", the minister cannot be credibly charged with "hiding" it through deception. Gospel fundamentals are straightforward and are to be declared with simplicity so that any reasonable, willing person can understand. Having established that, two questions remain:
1. What is the purpose of the gospel?
The purpose of the gospel is to teach regenerate sheep the particulars of their eternal salvation by Christ at Calvary (I Corinthians 15:3-4) so that they may join with the Lord's NT church in baptism (Matthew 28:19) and follow him in discipleship as their reasonable service (Romans 12:1). It sheds light on the truth of salvation (II Timothy 1:10). So the gospel teaches those who have the ears to hear, those who have faith, those who are already born again, regarding the righteousness of God - "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith TO FAITH" (Romans 1:17) and brings them into the church as disciples. It does not regenerate men, it feeds the regenerate.
2. Who are the potential beneficiaries of clear gospel declaration?
Well, it isn't the FOUND because they're NOT-LOST regarding gospel knowledge and are members of the Lord's NT church and thus already gospel-beneficiaries in the conversion sense. Also, it isn't the NON ELECT because the gospel doesn't teach that God saves the goats. Indeed a gospel of goat salvation is not the gospel of Jesus Christ at all. Most Christian groups get this wrong. In effect they teach that the gospel is instrumental in changing one's species. This, however, is never the case and the bible never speaks in that way regarding gospel utility.
While the non-elect are often said to be "eternally lost" in common Christian parlance, this phrase is more the produce of nominal Christian culture than the language of the bible. When the bible refers to people as LOST, it seems evident that it is referring to God's people - LOST SHEEP. The hope of the gospel is that it may deliver LOST SHEEP from ignorance or spiritual deception. I believe that many of God's sheep are spiritually deceived regarding gospel particulars. As a result, many of them oppose the truth and breed confusion by teaching doctrines that are contrary to the covenant. Some have worked themselves into a position of judicial blindness as a result of stiff neck rebellion. I believe that Paul's point is that there are those of God's sheep who are LOST to a proper understanding of the gospel, but we should handle the gospel with such clarity that their LOSTNESS cannot credibly be attributed to mishandling or deceit on our part.
In Summary
To sum all that up, I believe the “lost” in II Corinthians 4:3 is speaking of lost sheep (God’s elect) very much along the same lines as II Timothy 2:26.
- Elder Daniel Samons